Middle East needs bridges, not walls
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News
by Linda S. Heard - (Opinion) January 26, 2010 - 1:00am

Middle East peace has rarely seemed as remote as it does now. Instead of coming up with solutions, those involved are hurling accusations, erecting fences or throwing up their hands in despair. The longer this dangerous impasse continues the more the cauldron of violence threatens to boil over. None of the parties are immune from criticism, although some are more to blame than others.

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No entry for Arabs
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Avirama Golan - (Opinion) January 14, 2010 - 1:00am

Anyone observing Israel these days - and the hazing to which the Turkish ambassador was subjected is only the latest example - sees the neighborhood bully. Anyone who cares about self-preservation will stay away from this hard-hearted, dull-witted madman whose sole guiding principle is "national honor" - or in other words, sowing strife and dissension that undermines the state's interests.

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More Like “Tunnel Supervisor”
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
by Ali Ibrahim - (Opinion) January 14, 2010 - 1:00am

No level-headed politician, who wants to gain regional and international legitimacy, can justify illegitimate or illegal activity without risking his credibility. Therefore, it was very odd that the head of the Hamas politburo Khaled Mishal said that smuggling goods via the tunnels between the Gaza Strip and Rafah in Egypt is a legitimate trade that benefits both sides.

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US announces support for Egypt's wall
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
January 13, 2010 - 1:00am

Bethlehem – Ma’an – The US administration in Washington announced on Tuesday its support for the construction of an underground steel wall on the Egyptian borders with Gaza, to prevent the smuggling of weapons. Spokesman for the US Foreign Ministry Gordon Duguid said "We have seen that Egypt is carrying out activities which will help stop weapons smuggling into Gaza. We believe that weapons smuggling should stop, and that measures taken to stop that weapons smuggling should be – could be carried out."

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The new Sparta
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Eitan Haber - (Opinion) January 12, 2010 - 1:00am

The first instinctive Israeli response to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s declaration that the whole of Israel needs to be surrounded by a fence is as follows: Oy vey, that’s the last thing we need. Such response would be completely understandable. Every Israeli child, and even every Jewish child anywhere in the world, has been born with images of fences. These are the fences of the death camps in World War II.

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Hamas fears Gaza fence part of three-way siege
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Ali Waked - (Analysis) January 11, 2010 - 1:00am

Hamas officials in the Gaza Strip have admitted that they are concerned over the Egyptian underground barrier under construction along the Gaza-Egypt border. The fence is expected to reach a depth of 18 meters (59 feet), and span 10 km (about 6 miles), and threatens to strangle the Strip's only lifeline – the smuggling tunnels. Hamas fears that via this channel, Egypt is joining the Palestinian Authority and Israel in creating a three-way siege on the Strip that would severely hurt the movement.

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Steel wall not meant to starve Gazans, says Egyptian envoy
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News
(Analysis) January 8, 2010 - 1:00am

RIYADH: The Egyptian ambassador to Saudi Arabia has dismissed allegations that a steel underground wall being built by his country on its border with the Gaza Strip is aimed at starving local Palestinian people or forcing them to support any resumption of peace talks with Israel. Mahmoud Ouf issued the denial at the launch of the new Egyptian Cultural Center in Riyadh on Wednesday night. “Forced starvation is not possible because 95 percent of Gaza’s food, medicine and electricity do not come through these tunnels, but via crossing points along the border with Israel,” he said.

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Defending Egypt
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Ahram
by Abdel-Moneim Said - (Opinion) January 8, 2010 - 1:00am

No Egyptian should disagree with defending Egypt against all threats, whether from home or abroad. This is why every official charged with safeguarding the country's welfare, from the president and government ministers to representatives in the People's Assembly and the Shura Council take an oath of office in which they pledge not only to promote the interests of the people and uphold the constitution but also to defend the nation and "safeguard the integrity of its territory".

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Following clashes, convoy enters Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
(Editorial) January 7, 2010 - 1:00am

Gaza – Ma’an – Medical aid and 518 activists entered Gaza Wednesday night after protests against the Egyptian government refusal to admit 400 of the group lead to clashes along the divided border town. An Egyptian soldier was shot dead during the clashes, Egyptian state television reported, and at least 12 Palestinians were injured during a a demonstration against perceived Egyptian complicity in an Israeli-led blockade called by the de facto government of the Strip as they denounced what they said were attacks on the Viva Palestina convoy.

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Egypt says losing patience with Hamas
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Roee Nahmias - (Analysis) January 7, 2010 - 1:00am

Clashes followed by threats: Egypt warned Hamas on Wednesday night that there was a limit to its patience and that any attempt to provoke the Egyptian security forces would claim a price. The Foreign Ministry in Cairo made the announcement following Wednesday's violent clashes on the Gaza-Egypt border, which left an Egyptian border guard killed by sniper fire and nine policemen injured. Dozens of Palestinians were also hurt in the riots.

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